Gemotions

He’d known, deep down, that something was amiss. The sudden shifts in mood, the guardedness, the hours spent locked away in her room. Now, the proof was undeniable. A digital facade that was everything his daughter wasn't.

James, normally a composed man, felt a knot tighten in his stomach. He was not going to talk to her. He was not going to allow her to see him in this state.

He sat back in his chair, feeling the cool leather against his skin. His fingers drummed a slow, erratic rhythm on the desk. He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and waited. He had to be calm. He had to think. Later. Maybe. Not now.